Different Circumstances
by Unspoken Flame
Summary: What would have happened if things were different for Akane and Ranma? What if they meet at different times and under different circumstances? Is there something that would cause Akane to listen to Ranma more then she did in the original story?
1. Chapter 1

Different Circumstance

"I'm going to be late!"

Akane sped towards the school building as fast as her legs could take her, a pile of boys at her heels.

"Akane! Will you date me?" "No, date me" "Come back so I can ask you properly"

At the head of the swarm was captain of the Kendo club, Kuno Tatewaki, bokken at ready.

"Akane, I will defeat you and then finally allow you to date me. The Blue Lightening of Furinkin High will prevail!"

With a quick strike launched himself at Akane. With a quick side step Akane swept her foot up and kicked Kuno hard in the cheek, sending him flying. Taking a few boys with him he slammed into the side of a tree. Taking one last look at her, he made a goofy smile and passed out.

Making quick work of the remaining boys, Akane sped to class. As soon as she was 4 steps away from the door, the bell rang. _Shit! So close. If only the teacher wasn't so strict_. Walking into the room she apologized and took her seat. Sitting there she waited for her punishment, but it never came. _Hmmm…must be a new kid today. I wonder who it is._ No sooner had she thought that the teacher audibly cleared his throat.

"Class. We have a new student for the year."

Motioning to the door a boy walked in. He was about 5' 11" and well built, with rich black hair done in a ponytail. He had a red Chinese tunic and black training pants. _He's gorgeous_. Resisting the urge to groan or sigh, Akane shifted in her seat.

"His name is Ranma and he will be a student here from now on. Ranma? Do you have anything to say?"

Shaking his head, Ranma walked down the isle and looking at his feet and avoiding all eye contact. Akane noticed that everyone was staring at him. Open closer inspection Akane realized that they were looking at something in particular. It was a scar that ran down the right side of his neck and seemed to continue down his chest. Ranma took a seat behind Akane and hid his face in his arms on the desk. All stares were on him and he knew it. Continuing to keep his face in his arms, the teacher finally spoke.

"Ok class, today we are learning the Pythagoras Theorem."

Removing his face from his hands he took out a notebook and started to take notes. The class followed suit. A few minutes had passed without a problem but the stares continued. The students would look up from their notes from time to time and stare at his scar. When the bell rang, he rushed out of the room before anyone could talk to him. _Odd. I have heard of people being shy but..._ Akane left the room and went outside to see her friends with their lunches.

"Oh! What did Kasumi make for you today? She always makes the best lunches" This caused Akane to flush with anger a bit. _Just because I suck at cooking doesn't mean you have to poke fun at me. Damnit! She_ ate her lunch in quiet for a bit while listening to them gossip about the events that had occurred in class.

"I hear he is from China" "Well I heard he just came from China from a training mission. He is Japanese"

"Training mission", Akane spoke up. "Where did you hear that? Does that mean he know martial arts?"

The girls looked at her for a second and then spoke up. "It's just a rumor but it is possible" Now Akane's curiosity in the new boy had been peaked. _He's good looking and a martial artist. No wonder he had such a well toned body. I just hope he won't become part of my welcoming committee. Looking around the sitting area _Akane noticed another new person to the school. A red headed girl, who she hadn't seen before, was eating by herself. What was really odd was that she was eating in a tree. The bell rang; Akane turned her head in the direction of the bell for a split second and then looked back at the girl, who had vanished. Now even more confused Akane stood up and left for the remaining hours of class. Usually the first back to class Akane strolled in not expecting to see anyone else. To say the least, she was quite surprised to see Ranma there alone with his head down. Not wanting to bother him she took her seat and waited for the start of class. When everyone got back no one seemed to notice Ranma. It was as if he had disappeared to them. When the teacher showed up everyone finally quieted down and went into work mode. Unfortunately for Akane the lesson was on geometry.  
"Ranma can you tell me what the answer to question number 4 is?"

He stared at the book and shook his head.

"Then how about number 6? Number 7? 8?"

To all of the questions, Ranma just stared at the book and shook his head.

"Can you answer any of the questions?" Ranma nodded. "Then why don't you answer them?"

Ranma just stared at his book. "Well if you aren't going to answer me then you are going to have to stand in the hall with buckets of water."

As if used to it Ranma stood up and walked out of the room. His silhouette could be seen holding the pails of water. The class continued without another interruption. When the bell rang everyone rushed out. The teacher followed them and began to talk to Ranma. Akane was with the crowd down the hall and couldn't hear anything but she could see everything. The teacher looked angry at him and was questioning him vigorously. It wasn't for a while until Ranma removed an envelope out of his pocket and gave it to the teacher. The teacher seemed frustrated and hastily opened the letter and began to read. No more then a few seconds into the letter his facial expression changed. He looked like he was sorry, or was full of pity. Then what he did next was even weirder. He started to bow to the boy and, from the looks of it, apologize. Ranma just looked at his feet and nodded at the teachers unknown words. Nodding again and bowing Ranma took his leave in the opposite direction of Akane and the rest of the crowd.

At the Tendo house hold everyone seemed to be in a rush. Kasumi was making food while Nabiki was cleaning her camera extra well. Soun was taking out his shoji board. Someone seemed to be coming to visit.

"What's going on? Is someone visiting?"

"Oh Akane! An old friend of father's is coming to visit today. The reason why Father won't tell us; says it's a surprise."

"A surprise?"

"Yes. Quite odd isn't it?"

"Hmm, it seems today is full of oddities."

"How do you mean?"

Akane informed her of the day's events at school from the morning ritual to when she left. Kasumi just nodded during the whole conversation. At some point Nabiki stopped polishing her camera and listened along.  
"I heard about some strange underclassman down the grapevine. Should have researched it more. Could have made a decent amount."

Kasumi just frowned and shook her head. "I don't think that would have been nice. He's just a shy person. Let him be"

It was at that point that Soun came in with a big smile on his face. For some reason Akane dreaded that smile. "My daughters', how are we this afternoon?" Everyone turned to look at him.

"Oh nothing father. We were just talking to Akane about a new boy at school." Soun frowned at that remark.

"I hope you don't have anyone in mind Akane. You may be engaged soon."

"WHAT!"

No soon had she yelled the door rang. "Oh! It's him!"

Soun pranced towards the door and threw it up. It had started raining suddenly outside, hard, without any notice so Soun expected to see the person dry with an umbrella or completely soaked. What he didn't expect to see was a young woman in a kimono holding a katana. She was quite beautiful and looked no older then 30. Behind her and almost out of view was a young girl around the age of 16 with rose colored red hair done in a single braid.

"Hello, may I help you?"

"Yes you may Mr. Tendo. I am here on behalf of my husband, Saotome Genma."

"Oh my! What has happened to him?"

"If you would permit it, may we speak in private?"

"Of course." Soun stepped to the side to let both of them through. The red headed girl didn't follow them that far. She came in enough to get out of the rain and then seemed to hide in the corner. As much as she tried Akane still saw her. She leaned over to Kasumi and whispered silently. "That's the girl from the tree."

"Maybe you should go talk to here. That is, since you go to the same school."

Slowly, Akane made her way to the girl. She seemed to be very shy since she backed up a bit.

"How are you?" Silence. "Um, do you go to Furinkin high as well?" She didn't say anything again and Akane was getting impatient. Then an idea came to mind. "Um…do you know martial arts?"

Almost instantly the girl perked up and nodded. Smiling, Akane lead the way to the dojo. Walking to the back she pulled out a gi.

"Do you want to change into this?" The girl shook her head. Shrugging, Akane started to change. When she started to remove her school uniform the girl blushed and turn away. Shrugging it away again she finished changing and moved to the center of the dojo, the girl close behind.

"Ready? I won't go easy on you. I'm pretty good." Both moved into sparring position. After staring at each other for some time, Akane to the initiative and sprang towards the girl. She easily dodged and side stepped. Akane recovered fast enough to send a few punches at her. Each was dodged with ease and no effort was made in retaliation. For 30 minutes the spar continued like that until Akane became frustrated. Tired and out of breath, Akane sent one last punch. It was slow so she didn't expect it to connect but then another odd thing happened. The girl was about to dodge when she moved. She moved into the punch, which sent her flying. Skidding to a stop at the end of the floor she stood up, winded.

"I think we should stop now." The girl nodded and moved towards Akane.

"I didn't get your name before, can you tell me now?"

The girl shied away again and looked at the floor.

Akane tried to change the subject. "Hmmm…when did you start to go to the Furinkin High?"

Again, the girl said nothing to her. A little unnerved, Akane tried something else.

"Well I don't like to be in my own sweat for too long. You go take a bath and I'll take one after you"

The girl nodded and walked to the bathroom. Akane walked to the kitchen to let her sister know that Mrs. Saotome's daughter was in the bath. When she was about to go upstairs she changed her mind. _ Why take a bath later when I can take one now. After all, we are both girls…_

The girl walked into the bathing room started to remove her clothes. Her body was petite and full of curves. Moving to the wash station she washed the sweat from her body in silence. After a thorough washing she moved to the big bath at he end of the room. Completely submerging herself in the water, she came up no longer a she. A young boy around the age of 16 with raven black hair done up in a single braid. He had a scar that ran from the right side of his neck to the middle of his chest. Ranma sat up and relaxed against the wall. The memory of the day's events came to mind and it put him at a panic. _What am I going to do? I can't get married. Not with this body. Not like **this**. God, what am I going to do._ Sitting in the bath, Ranma continued to ponder his situation. Then he heard the sound of the door opening and closing. In a panic, Ranma searched the room for a towel. Seeing one across the floor he leaped up to try to get it but was too late. Across from him, right next to the towel, was the youngest of the Tendo sisters in front of him, completely naked and staring at him. Ranma, despite the embarrassment and shame, looked Akane over from head to toe. A slight blush crept over his face. Akane took in all of his features as well. From his hair to his scar and then further down his waist. During her inspection she went through many emotions. From shock to curiosity; then after a quick blush, anger. Without further thought he dropped back into the water and hid. Akane just stepped backwards out of the door, shut it, and screamed.

"There is a pervert in our bathing room!" Nabiki and Kasumi came into the hall.

"A pervert?"

"Yes, and he's that boy from my school"

"What?"

Akane made her way upstairs and picked up 2 dumbbells. With a dumbbell in each hand she raced down the stairs to the bathing room. When she reached the foot of the stairs, Mrs. Saotome had showed up.

"Hold it right there."

Akane turned around, bewildered. "Why? I am going to kick that guy's ass"

"That GUY is my son"

"That's your son? That pervert! He was peeping at me. And what about your daughter? She was in there before."

"Technically, she still is."

"Huh?"

"Ranma and my daughter are one in the same."

"Ranma is a cross dresser?"

"No…he is...cursed." This made Akane drop everything and listen. "He turns into a girl when he touches cold water, and changes back to a boy when he touches warm water. The bath just made him revert to his normal self"

Akane just stood in place and absorbed as much as she could. "If what you are saying is true, then why didn't' he tell us that."

"Because…because he can't talk." Akane thought for a second.

"What do you mean by 'he can't talk'?"

The bathing room door opened and a fully clothed Ranma stepped out. His head was hanging lower then anyone there had ever seen and his eyes were shut. He looked like he was waiting for a killer blow from an oncoming enemy. Just waiting and allowing it to hit him. He had such sadness in his eyes.

"He's mute"

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_This is my second fan fic. I have decided what i am going to do with it and what i mean by that is whether the perspective will switch from Akane to Ranma or will it be like this in the 3rd person. I want you to decide. Leave me some reviews on this and when i get the First Person view verson finished review that one. Let me know what you like best. Looking forward to it._ _Thanks ;D  
_

_Ok. This is the newly updated version. I fixed it up to work with my other ideas and did a really quick proof read so the spell is updated. Hope you like the story later on. I will be updating it when i have the chance.  
_

_-Unspoken Flame_


	2. Chapter 2

_He's mute… He's mute... HE'S MUTE! BUT…how did it happen? Was he born with it? Does that scar have anything to do with it? Oh god, I don't even know what is going on anymore… _A million thoughts went through Akane's head but she only said one. "Why?" Mrs. Saotome looked at her and smiled.

"Well its just one of those things that just happened. It could have happened to anyone…" Under her breath she mumbled the words "sort of". The only one that caught it was Akane but she didn't push it.

"Now, I am sure you have a lot of questions about this meeting so I think it is a good time to tell you." She moved into the living room with everyone else in tow.

"Let's see, where to begin." Mrs. Saotome said as she took a seat on the couch. Ranma and the rest of the girls took a seat on the floor, leaving room for their father on the chair. "I guess we should get to the point. I was sent here by request of my husband…" She slowed down while saying "my husband" and Ranma noticeably winced at the name. "His request was that I bring Ranma here to marry one of you young ladies." Almost instantly all of the girls reacted, with Akane having the loudest point. "Married! But I hate boys." She looked over to Ranma. "Especially perverted ones." Ranma flinched and sunk his head lower.

"Well you honestly aren't going to hold that against him. If I remember you had your own "view" as it were."

Akane blushed and changed the subject. "Well, I'm just 16. I can't get married." The other sisters nodded their heads in unison as if they were I the same situation as Akane. This time her father spoke up.

"Actually you can. But we aren't going to do it until you're much older. Mrs. Saotome wants Ranma to finish school first."

"But father." Kasumi spoke up. "What about Dr. Tofu? He and I have been getting so close lately." Now it was time for Akane to wince, which Ranma noticed.

"I'm sorry Kasumi, but this is out of my hands. We made a promise and now it is a request. I can't do anything more or I risk my own honor."

"Hmpf. How come Mr. Saotome doesn't come down and say it himself." Raman's head fell further and Soun closed his eyes. Mrs. Saotome stayed quit for a few seconds. Akane knew she would regret what she had said, and she was right.

"That is because Mr. Saotome passed away a few years ago. We found his will a few months ago requesting this arrangement. You see, your father and my husband used to be trained by the same master. They made an agreement a long time ago, before any of you where born, to marry the families together. Since I only have a boy and you are all girls, we have this certain arrangement." The girls sat there for a moment trying to absorb everything. It was Akane that spoke first. "Well, then I guess we should get this started. Who's the one?" Mrs. Saotome smiled.

"Well that is up to Ranma, but if any of you have any suggestions.

"Akane! Akane is the best choice." Both Kasumi and Nabiki answered in unison. Akane turn and glared at them both, a small blush on her cheeks. Mrs. Saotome just chuckled and turned to Ranma. "Is Akane the one you would like to pick?" Ranma looked up at Akane and stared at her a bit. Akane felt herself flush slightly. He then put his head down and nodded. Again, Akane blushed and turned away.

"This doesn't mean you can look in at me in the bath when you want. I swear, if you do, this marriage is off."

"Well then, it seems that this arrangement is settled. Ranma and I will be setting off for our inn. Good night to you all."

Mrs. Saotome and Ranma stood up to leave but Kasumi was quick to act.

"Oh you must stay here from now on. It would allow Ranma and Akane to get to know each other more." Mrs. Saotome turned and thought for a second. "We will see. Give us until the weekend for our decision to be final." And with that they both turned, left the room and then left the house.

The rest of the night was uneventful as always but unnoticed by Akane, who was deep in thought in her room. _I'm going to get married. To Ranma. It was just this morning that I saw him and now I am marrying him. How does this sort of thing happen to people?_ Since she knew how it happened this time, she just turned over and went to sleep.

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_Thanks for the review. I enjoyed the thoroughly. This is just a short chapter cause i wanted to get it out of the way and i had time in the morning before work. Will fix it up and fine tune it later. It will be a while before I work on this anymore cause i got WoW things to do as well as get ready for my sophmore year in college. YAY!_

_-Unspoken Flame _


	3. Chapter 3

For Akane, she didn't want the sun to come up that morning. She just wanted to lie in bed and sulk. To be engaged to someone she had never met before was just too much to take. And him not being able to talk didn't make matters easier. Akane rolled over in bed to turn the alarm clock off. _What am I going to do? We haven't even talked to each other. We can't talk to each other. I just want to have a normal high school life, or as normal a life that someone who is chased every morning by love crazy boys can have. UGH! This is just nuts!_

Kicking her sheets up, she got dressed and ran out the door. Her lunch, oddly enough, wasn't made but since her time left was short she hurried out the door. The walk to school was normal as usual but the thoughts were still there. _I'm engaged. I'm engaged. I'm engaged. I'M ENGAGED! _Angry, she kicked a stone on the pavement, sending it flying across the street, taking out a wall in the process. Fuming, she stomped off towards the school.

Expecting the normal crowd to be there she went into fighting position. Going into a burst run, she ran through the school gates and stopped in her tracks. The entire crowd of boys were on the ground, groaning. Kuno was in the middle of the pile, multiple feet impressions on his face and chest. Surveying the scene some more she caught a glimpse of a black pig tail passing the side of the building. Again in burst run mode she caught up with the lock of hair and pulled it. Ranma tumbled to the ground. Almost immediately, he hopped into a defensive stance. Noticing that the "attacker" was Akane, he eased up and smiled a bit, then lost his smile when he saw the unhappy look on Akane. To say that Akane was unhappy would be an understatement. She was furious.

"What the hell do you think you are doing? I don't need anyone to fight for me. I can do it. I don't need you. Just because we're engaged doesn't mean I am unable to take care of myself. Just do me a favor and… LEAVE…ME…ALONE!"

To be honest, Akane didn't mean everything she said. She did want him to leave her alone forever. She was just overwhelmed by everything that has happened lately. The thought that this boy was trying to run her life just sent her overbroad. Anger, and secretly embarrassed, Akane ran off towards the school. Changing her shoes at her shoe locker she walked to class. Expecting to see Ranma first in class this time she tried to think up an apology. _I'm sorry. I'm just really overwhelmed by everything that's happening so far. It's just too much for me right now. I appreciate what you did for me but I want to do it by myself. It's kind of like training…you know? Yeah. That will do._ Rounding the corner she saw Ranma's chair empty. Moving closer she saw a folded piece of paper on her desk. Sitting down, she picked up the paper and opened it. One word was written on it: "Sorry". All around, she saw students talking to each other and performing their own pre-class rituals.

"Have any of you seen Ranma"

"Who"

"Um, Ranma. The new kid?"

"Oh him. Not this morning."

"Ok, thanks."

The bell rang and the teacher walked in. Whatever the lesson was one, Akane didn't know because she wasn't paying attention. Every terrible thing that she could think of went through her head. Ranma ran away. Ranma was committing suicide. Ranma was becoming worse then before. And, oddly, Ranma was canceling the marriage. That last one made here think for a long time. _Do I want to be married to him? No! Not him. Not to someone I just met. I want to marry someone I love. Don't I?_

The bell rang and the class went to lunch. Since she had no money or a lunch, Akane went to meet her friends. On a whim she looked to the tree that Ranma stayed in last lunch. Sure enough, in girl form, he was laying on one of the larger branches. Forgetting about her friends, Akane made her way to the tree.

"I'm sorry that I yelled like that."

Obviously started, Ranma visibly jerked up and then steadied herself. With out even looking down she nodded.

"I'm just…just used to protecting myself. I don't want to feel helpless or feel like I need to rely on someone else. You know?"

Nodding, Ranma started to write something on a pad of paper. He handed the paper to Akane.

**It's ok. I understand. I don't like to feel helpless either. **

"And…this whole engagement thing is really tough to cope with. I mean, I'm 16. I should be having fun and finishing school in hopes to go to college."

**I understand. I feel the same way. Maybe a little differently but the same none the less.**

Akane thought for a while before she asked her next question. "Do you want to be engaged?"

Ranma thought just as long as Akane. **To be honest. I don't know. I guess all that we can do is go with the flow and stay engaged. If it doesn't work out we could always stop. We don't have to get married in the future if we don't want to. We will just leave decision for the future. But for right now, I'm going home.**

"Home? But its just lunch."

**Yeah but I know everything that they are talking about. Plus, I don't want to stay for the rest of class. I just want to lie down in my bed and do some thinking. I will see you tonight. We're moving in tonight.**

"Ok. See you then."

Ranma leapt from the tree and took off at a run when she hit the ground. In seconds she was gone. Akane just turned around and walked to class where she spent the remainder of her day thinking about her conversation with Ranma, the lesson forgotten.

When Akane made it home she saw Mrs. Saotome in the kitchen talking to Kasumi. _Must be swapping recipes or something._ Ignoring them she went up to her room and changed into her normal clothes. Not having anything else to do she went to the dojo to do a few quick exercises. It was there that she saw Ranma. Ducking to the side Akane watch him train, with awe. He was sparring alone with dummy, but it seemed to be in some bad shape. Every strike he made hit with such force that the dummy would rock back, straining on its bindings. His fists were like blurs and never missed their mark. But his face was torn with emotion. At times, when he hit the dummy, it looked like a piece of his soul was being shattered. Then his face would contort with pure anger and the dummy would be strained to its max. Akane was broken from her thoughts when he saw a dummy's chest explode and fall from its stand. Ranma just casually walked over to it and tossed it into a pile of used dummies. He turned around and was startled to see Akane looking at him. With a small smile and a wave he walked towards the bathing room. Akane just watched him walk by, not moving an inch. _He must have so much pain. I wish I knew why he is like that…_ Not in the mood to train, she made her way to her room to finish homework.

A few hours later there is a knock at her door. Having completed her work a while ago, Akane got up from her bed and opened the door. Ranma was there. He made a quick motion with his hands that looked like eating and nudged his head towards the kitchen. Taking the hint she followed him downstairs. Dinner was quick and simple. It seemed to be a mixture of Kasumi's and Mrs. Saotome cooking. Everyone looked pleased but Ranma was still looking a little down.

When the meal was finished everyone went their separate way with Mrs. Saotome left to bring the dishes to Kasumi.

"Um…Mrs. Saotome?" She looked up to Akane and smiled.

"Please. Call me Nodoka."

"Nodoka…I was wondering if you could tell me a little more about Ranma. Like how he got his scar. And why he is so sad." Nodoka just put her plates down and walked to a chair in the living room (which was clear of anyone). Sitting down she motioned for Akane to follow, who sat on the couch next to her.

"This will be very tough. It took me a while to learn what I could from Ranma and in his condition he can be more reserved with what he says." She sighed. "I also think it would be better if you asked him about it."

"I know…but I would like to find out now. It does sound selfish but I saw something today that really made me worry." Almost immediately Nodoka responded.

"You saw him training didn't you?" Akane nodded. Nodoka sighed again.

"He gets like that. Training reminds him of his father. His emotions are very torn with him."

"Why is that?"

"Because Genma wasn't the best father. His training methods were crude and abusive. That's how he got that scar on his chest. One of the forms that his father taught him was Nekoken, cat-fu."

"What's that?"

"It allows the user to take on the abilities of a cat. Its reflexes, agility, strength, everything just like how and alley cat would fight."

"How is that bad?"

"The technique isn't that bad. But to learn it is. His father threw him into a pit of alley cats with fish cakes strapped around him." Akane gasped while Nodoka nodded, remembering. "He was like lunch to them. One of the cats was a bobcat and right before we got him out of there he slashed Ranma on the chest. He was just a boy when it happened. About 6 or 7."

"But how could you let that happen?"

"Because back then I had the same thinking of his father. I wanted my boy to be a 'Man Amongst Men'. I even went to the extremes of threatening seppuku. My dream clouded my judgment and it hurt Ranma in the end. For that I am sorry."

Akane just sat there for a few seconds.

"How did his father die?" Nodoka just sat there, thinking really hard.

"He drowned…at the Jusenkyo."

"Then why does Ranma feel so bad about it."

"What you have to understand is that Ranma doesn't have many friends. Almost none, in fact. He moved a lot for his training. He didn't even get any proper schooling until after his father died. His scar also scared a lot of the children that he met." Akane remembered the kids a school staring at his scar. "Having no one to be with caused Ranma to cling to what he could, which was me and his father. Even though his father's actions were abusive, and even though Ranma hated him for it, he still loved him. This is why he is emotionally torn." Nodoka paused for a bit. "At Jusenkyo, his father was sparring Ranma. He kept on heckling him and heckling him and then he punched him into one of the springs. His father didn't understand Chinese, you see, so he didn't know of the curse. When he saw Ranma come out of the pool he was startled. He lost his balance a bit; if he didn't do that then he may have been here today." Tears started to form on the side of Nodoka's eyes. Dabbing them with her sleeve she continued with the story. "Ranma punched the pole that Genma was struggling to keep his balance on and fell towards one of the springs. He hit his head on side of the spring and broke his neck. Ranma didn't even know that he himself had changed so when he saw a panda in the spring he just ignored it. He just stood outside the spring and told his father to stop 'fooling around'. Then the Jusenkyo guide came out with a pot of hot water, pulled the panda out and poured the water on it. When his father appeared, thought to be unconscious, Ranma did everything to try to save him, but his father was already dead. This was when Ranma lost his voice." Nodoka stopped for a moment to blow her nose. "He…he buried him at a neighboring Amazon village. It was easy when his father was in panda form and he was in his girl form. He learned around this time to use his girl form to evade people and get past obstacles. If he wasn't a girl they may have eaten his panda father and tried to kill him. When he came home it was raining. I had a drenched girl in my son's clothes, who couldn't speak and was telling me with a pen and paper that he was my son. I would have killed him if he hadn't got a hold of some hot water. I stopped my horrible dream and helped my son any way I could. I gave him an education and as much love as I could. He still continued to train though…and that was 4 years ago."

Akane just sat there thinking about what she had heard. When she was about to speak, Nodoka hushed her.

"Don't say anything now. It's getting late. We can talk about it another day."

Akane nodded and walked to her room. As she passed Ranma and Nodoka's room, she looked in to find Ranma tossing in his sleep. Continuing to her room, Akane shut the door behind her and flopped onto her bed. Silently, she replayed everything that Mrs. Saotome had said over and over until she fell asleep.

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_Thanks for all of the reviews. They have pressed me to finish this chapter now. Unfortunately, i won't be able to do any more for a while. College is starting for me on monday and i am going to be on World of Warcraft while i wait for monday. I want to get to lvl 40 before i leave for school. And i need to make about 150 gold...damn gold. You can catch me in the relam, **Cenarion Circle**. My characters' name is **Nuhart**. Look me up if you are ever on, but don't expect a reply if i am busy.__-Unspoken Flame _


	4. Chapter 4

It had been a week since Akane and Mrs. Saotome's talk. Akane had done her best to talk to Ranma during that time but there is only so much you can say to someone who is mute. That is, there is only so much that they can say. Conversations were normal, so to speak. They discussed martial arts, things that were going on at school, things that teenagers were doing these days. At no time did Akane bring up Ranma's condition. She wanted to but wouldn't let herself so as not to loose the friendship. As the days went by Ranma began to open up more. He would tell her a little more about himself everyday. At some points he would talk about his father and some of their past adventures. Akane, in return would talk about her mother. Slowly, Ranma would smile more often. He wouldn't always have a sad look on his face like he just wanted to die. This not only made Akane happy, but the entire family happy; especially his mother. Every time she saw her son smile she looked like she was on the verge of tears. And then…one day…all of that work was wiped away.

He woke up like any other day. He would brush his teeth and go for a solo work out session after a quick jog, followed by a nice bath and then of to school or whatever he had planed for the day. But not today. Today he stayed in bed. He stayed all morning and through the afternoon and even till night. He didn't eat nor sleep. Just lying in bed; staring at the ceiling. The family was worried but the only one who seemed to know what was going on was Mrs. Saotome. She was the most worried of all. She later told them that it was the anniversary of his father's death. When the family heard this they decided to let it go.

That night everyone slept soundly…except for Akane. She was tossing and turning thinking about what had happened to Ranma's father. She wondered, 'what if my father had died?' She quickly waved that off due to the fact that her mother had died. Then she thought, 'what if my father abused me like Ranma's father did him? Would I be like Ranma? Would I be mourning his death today like he is or would I just hate him and let it be?' Pondering it some more Akane rolled over and fell asleep.

The next morning the Tendo and Saotome families came down for breakfast. After they started to eat they noticed that they were missing a family member. Search the dojo for any sign of him working out they found nothing. The street was empty and the bath hadn't even been used yet. When at last they checked his room they found a note. All that it said was,

Gone to pay my respects  
and ask for forgiveness.  
Don't follow me.

-Ranma

Although she understood she couldn't fully comprehend it. Akane just stared at the note and then looked at Mrs. Saotome like she had no idea what it meant.

"What does he mean by 'gone to pay my respects' Mrs. Saotome?"

Mrs. Saotome just looked at her and said, "I think he is going to see his father."

Akane just stood in place. "How will he get there?"

"We don't have the money for a plane ticket so I think he will go the old way"

Akane looked puzzled. "What's the 'old way'?"

"The same way that he and his father went. Knowing him he will make this into his personal pilgrimage. Going from our old house, he will follow the same trail that his father took him when he was young. It will lead to the ocean and then he will swim to China."

"SWIM TO CHINA" They all yelled.

Mrs. Saotome just smiled. "Yes. Swim. That's how they got there last time and he will do it again. Genma thought of it as training, that and its cheaper then a boat or plane."

A few seconds went by and no one said anything. Then Akane spoke up.

"Mrs. Saotome, which way to your old house?"

Thinking for a bit, Mrs. Saotome pointed north. "Up north for about 100 miles. A nice long hike. Took us a while to get here."

"And which way will Ranma go when he leaves your house?"

Understanding where Akane was going with her questions, Nadoka smiled. "He will likely go east. Genma was never good with directions."

Without thinking Akane dashed for her room. Tossing in a backpack some extra cloths, a few spare gi's, some camping supplies, a tent and a sleeping bag she started out of the door. Only to be stopped by Mrs. Saotome. In her hand she had a few bento's prepared for her and few easy to prepare meals to be used when camping.

When they were in her bag, she pushed Akane out the door and gave her a solemn wave goodbye. Akane could have sworn that she even heard her say "thank you" as well. Marching down the street she headed towards the woods to the north where she would later come across Ranma's old home. No matter what she was going help Ranma on this journey. She was going to understand Ranma's pain, even if it killed her.

* * *

_Author's Note:_

_Well now. It has been quite a while. I have been wanting to work on one of my works of writing but i just could force myself to sit down and do it. But after watching the movie "Spanglish" i couldn't help thinking about writing something and so i thought i would do this. My other writing need more brainstorming before i touch it anymore. I have to thank all of you who have reviewed this so far. I love to hear what you have to say and it makes me feel happy that people are reading this. It makes me think that others think like me and that i am not alone in this world in the way that i think. I have a great idea planed for how the story will progress. I just hope i remember it the next time i work on this. Guess i will just have to write my idea down. He is a tidbit. I will be writing the story as a walk down memory lane sort of way. Ranma and Akane will be following his old training route and be meeting people from the series. He will reminice about the "old days" and will open up more to Akane. They will eventually end up in China. Whether Ranma will speak again you will have to wait to find out. Enjoy XD_

_-Unspoken Flame _


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